Dispensing head and fluid product dispensing device comprising same

ABSTRACT

A dispenser head for a dispenser device for dispensing a fluid, said dispenser head being characterized in that it comprises an inner body ( 10 ) defining a dispensing channel ( 11 ) for the fluid, said channel ( 11 ) being terminated by a dispensing orifice ( 12 ), and a separate outer body ( 20 ) defining an actuating surface ( 21 ) on which the user presses to actuate the dispenser device, said outer body ( 20 ) being fitted over said inner body ( 10 ) in a manner such that, in the event that an attempt is made to tear off or to remove said dispenser head, only said outer body ( 20 ) is removable, said inner body ( 20 ) remaining fixed to said dispenser device.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an improved dispenser head and to afluid dispenser device including such a head.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Fluid dispenser devices are well known, and such a device generallycomprises a reservoir, a dispenser member, such as a pump or a valve,mounted on said reservoir, and a dispenser device making it possible toactuate the pump and thus to dispense the fluid contained in thereservoir. The head is generally fixed to the moving actuating rod foractuating the pump, and it defines an expulsion channel leading to adispensing orifice making it possible to dispense the fluid.

Known dispenser heads can suffer from certain disadvantages. In theevent that the pusher is removed or torn off accidentally or improperlyfrom its position as mounted on the pump, the fluid contained in thepump or in the reservoir might become contaminated. Furthermore, sincethe pusher is the last part of the fluid dispenser device to beassembled, it is desirable to make the last assembly step as simple aspossible. The manufacturer of the fluid to be dispensed is generally notthe manufacturer of the dispenser device, so that, after the reservoirhas been filled, it is necessary firstly to mount the pump on thereservoir, and then to mount the dispenser head on the pump. Therefore,the pump and the dispenser head are generally delivered separately, andassembled on the site of the manufacturer of the fluid. In which case,it can be difficult to avoid all risk of contamination while the head isbeing assembled on the pump, and that assembly requires complicatedtools.

Another problem that can arise with dispenser heads, in particulardispenser heads of the nasal applicator type, concerns manufacture andassembly of the dispenser head itself. In particular in spray uses, itis generally necessary to form a spray profile at the dispensingorifice. Unfortunately, in particular in devices of the nasal applicatortype, the end of the head provided with the dispensing orifice isrelatively remote from the injection point of the mold, which makes itdifficult to form the spray profile and to achieve accuracy in formingit.

Similarly, it can be desirable to avoid any risk of the dispenser headbeing removed, to prevent the user from attempting various undesiredoperations, such as refilling the reservoir, for example.

Furthermore, in particular when the dispenser head is used as the pusherof a nasal applicator, it is important for it to be possible to cleanthe dispenser head, without however any risk of polluting the workingportion of the pump, and in particular the fluid contained therein.

Documents DE-14 91 714, U.S. Pat. No. 4,830,224, and DE-41 10 304disclose dispenser heads or pushers made up from more than one piece,but none of them makes it possible to prevent the piece incorporatingthe dispensing orifice from being torn off, so that the fluid iscontaminated if any attempt is made to tear off the pusher.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a dispenser head and afluid dispenser device incorporating such a dispenser head that do notreproduce the above-mentioned drawbacks.

In particular, an object of the present invention is to provide adispenser head that prevents any risk of contaminating the fluid.

Another object of the present invention is to provide such a dispenserhead that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and to assemble.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide such adispenser head for which the final stage of assembly of the fluiddispenser device is simplified, in particular when the manufacturer ofthe fluid to be dispensed is different from the manufacturer of thedispenser device.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a dispenserhead that prevents said head from being torn off or removed from thedispenser device after it has been assembled.

Another object of the present invention is to provide such a dispenserhead that is easy to clean without affecting the working portion of thepump in any way.

The present invention thus provides a dispenser head for a fluiddispenser device for dispensing a fluid, said dispenser head comprisingan inner body defining a dispensing channel for the fluid, said channelbeing terminated by a dispensing orifice, and a separate outer bodydefining an actuating surface on which the user presses to actuate thedispenser device, said outer body being fitted over said inner body in amanner such that, in the event that an attempt is made to tear off or toremove said dispenser head, only said outer body is removable, saidinner body remaining fixed to said dispenser device.

Advantageously, the inner body has an outside radial shoulderco-operating with a corresponding inside radial shoulder of the outerbody to define the assembled position of the head.

Advantageously, the outer body is a push fit on the inner body.

In an advantageous variant embodiment, the head is in the form of apusher for a nasal applicator, the pusher comprising a frustoconicalelongate portion designed to penetrate in part into the nostril, and awider portion forming the actuating surface.

In a first embodiment, the outer body incorporates the frustoconicalportion and the wider portion.

In a second embodiment, the inner body incorporates the frustoconicalportion, and the outer body incorporates the wider portion.

Preferably, the inner body comprises a hollow tubular member, and afrustoconical skirt extending around said tubular member to form saidfrustoconical portion, the free end of said skirt incorporating a radialshoulder for co-operating with the outer body.

The free end of said frustoconical skirt is provided with a sharp edgeat its axial end surface.

Advantageously, the inner body is provided with fixing means, such assnap-fastening means, for fixing to said dispenser device.

The present invention also provides a fluid dispenser device comprisinga fluid reservoir, and a dispenser member such as a pump, said fluiddispenser device further comprising a dispenser head of the presentinvention.

Preferably, said inner body of the head is snap-fastened to theactuating rod of the pump so that, in the event that an attempt is madeto tear off or remove the head, the inner body remains fixed to saidpump, thereby preventing any contamination of the fluid contained in thereservoir.

Advantageously, said inner body of the head is provided with closuremeans at the dispensing orifice.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention appearmore clearly from the following detailed description of embodiments ofthe present invention, given by way of non-limiting example and withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic section view of a fluid dispenser deviceincorporating a dispenser head of the invention, in the disassembledstate;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to the FIG. 1 view, in the assembled state;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to the FIG. 2 view, showing a variantembodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic section view of another variant embodiment ofthe present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

All of the embodiments shown in the figures more particularly concerndispenser heads of the nasal applicator pusher type. Naturally, thepresent invention is not limited to this particular type of dispenserhead.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show an embodiment of the dispenser head of the presentinvention respectively in the nonassembled position and in the assembledposition, the dispenser head co-operating with a pump 2 mounted on areservoir 1 to form a fluid dispenser device. The reservoir and the pumpmay be of any type, and, in place of a pump, it is equally possible touse a valve, such as a metering valve. The particular components of thedispenser head are therefore not described any more fully below.

The dispenser head of the invention includes an inner body 10 defining adispensing channel 11 for the fluid. In the example shown in FIG. 1,said inner body 10 is connected to the actuating rod of the pump,preferably in leaktight manner. The expulsion channel 11 is terminatedby a dispensing orifice 12 which is thus part of the inner body 10. Asshown in FIG. 1, the inner body 10 may be pre-assembled on the pump 2,in particular on the site of the manufacturer of said pump. The headfurther includes an outer body 20 which defines an actuating surface 21,which, in the examples shown in the drawings, is a finger-receivingpress zone on which the user presses to actuate the dispenser device.The outer body 20 is fitted over the inner body 10 as shown in FIG. 2,preferably as a push fit, so that, if an attempt is made to tear offsaid dispenser head, only said outer body 20 is removable, while theinner body 10 remains fixed to said dispenser device, which, in thisexample, is the pump 2.

The inner body 10 may be secured firmly to the pump as a tight fit, or,as shown in FIG. 4, by means of a snap-fastening system 18 whereby thebottom end of the inner body 10 is snap-fastened to the actuating rod 3of the pump 2.

Preferably, the inner body 10 is provided with an outside radialshoulder 19 which co-operates with a corresponding inside radialshoulder 29 in the outer body 20 to define an assembled position for thehead, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

With reference more particularly to the embodiment of the pusher for anasal applicator as shown in the figures, the pusher typically comprisesa frustoconical elongate portion which is designed to penetrate in partinto the nostril, and a wider portion which forms the actuating surface.In a first variant embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the outer body 20incorporates the frustoconical portion 25 and the wider portion 21. Inwhich case, the inner body 10 is constituted by a hollow tubular element13, in which it is optionally possible to dispose a spray insert 14 asshown in FIG. 4. If an attempt is made to remove or to disassemble thepusher, only the outer body 20 is removed while the inner body 10remains fixed to the pump, thereby preventing any contamination of thefluid contained in the reservoir, or in the pump, while also making thepusher easy to clean.

FIG. 3 shows a variant in which the inner body 10 incorporates thefrustoconical portion 15 while the outer body 20 incorporates the widerportion 21 forming the actuating zone. In this example, in addition toincluding the hollow tubular member 13, the inner body 10 also includesa frustoconical skirt 15 which extends around said tubular member 13 toform said frustoconical portion. Advantageously, the free end of saidskirt 15, i.e. the bottom end in the drawings, is provided firstly withthe radial shoulder 19 which co-operates with the outer body 20, andsecondly with a sharp edge 17 at its axial end surface to form a spikyanti-tear-off zone.

FIG. 4 shows yet another variant, in which, as mentioned above, theinner body 10 is snap-fastened on the rod 3 of the pump 2, and saidinner body 10 incorporates closure means 40 disposed upstream from thedispensing orifice 12, thereby guaranteeing excellent leaktightness overthe entire fluid outlet path from the reservoir 1 to the dispensingorifice.

The dispenser head of the present invention procures the followingadvantages:

by means of its two-piece structure, it makes it possible for the outerpiece only to be removed while the inner piece which incorporates thedispensing orifice is held on the pump, thereby avoiding any risk ofcontamination, or of refilling, etc., while also making it easy for saiddispenser head to be cleaned thoroughly;

the head being made in two pieces makes it possible for the inner bodyto be pre-assembled on the pump on the site of the manufacturer of thepump, which greatly facilitates assembly on the site of the manufacturerof the fluid to be dispensed, in particular if the fluid manufacturer isdifferent from the dispenser device manufacturer;

the head being made in two pieces greatly facilitates the forming of thespray profile in the dispenser device, it being possible for the innerbody to be made in a tubular form in which it is very easy to providesuch a profile, unlike the nasal applicator heads of the state of theart that are made in one piece, in which, because of the curvaturenecessary at the end of the pusher, problems of wall thickness are posedthat make it difficult to form said spray profile; in the present case,such problems are not posed since the rounded shape of the end of thehead may be formed on the outer body that is assembled subsequently onthe inner body; and molding the head, in particular molding the innerbody and the outer body, is facilitated compared with molding the headin a single piece.

Naturally, the examples described above with reference to theaccompanying drawings are given merely by way of non-limiting example,and do not limit the scope of the invention as defined by theaccompanying claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A dispenser head for a fluid dispenser device fordispensing a fluid, said dispenser head being characterized in that itcomprises an inner body (10) defining a dispensing channel (11) for thefluid, said channel (11) being terminated by a dispensing orifice (12),and a separate outer body (20) defining an actuating surface (21) onwhich the user presses to actuate the dispenser device, said inner body(10) incorporating said dispensing orifice (12) being fixed innon-removable manner to a stem of said dispenser device and said outerbody (20) being fitted over said inner body (10) in removable mannersuch that, in the event that an attempt is made to tear off or to removesaid dispenser head, only said outer body (20) is removable, said innerbody (20) remaining fixed to said dispenser device.
 2. A head accordingto claim 1, in which the inner body (10) has an outside radial shoulder(19) co-operating with a corresponding inside radial shoulder (29) ofthe outer body (20) to define the assembled position of the head.
 3. Ahead according to claim 1, in which the outer body (20) is a push fit onthe inner body (10).
 4. A head according to claim 1, in the form of apusher for a nasal applicator, the pusher comprising a frustocoricalelongate portion (15, 25) designed to penetrate in part into thenostril, and a wider portion (21) forming the actuating surface.
 5. Ahead according to claim 4, in which the outer body (20) incorporates thefrustoconical portion (25) and the wider portion (21).
 6. A headaccording to claim 4, in which the inner body (10) incorporates thefrustoconical portion (15), and the outer body (20) incorporates thewider portion (21).
 7. A head according to claim 6, in which the innerbody (10) comprises a hollow tubular member (13), and a frustoconicalskirt (15) extending around said tubular member (13) to form saidfrustoconical portion, the free end of said skirt (15) incorporating aradial shoulder (19) for co-operating with the outer body (20).
 8. Ahead according to claim 7, in which the free end of said frustoconicalskirt (15) is provided with a sharp edge (17) at its axial end surface.9. A head according to claim 1, in which the inner body (10) is providedwith fixing means (18), such as snap-fastening means, for fixing to saiddispenser device.
 10. A fluid dispenser device comprising a fluidreservoir (1), and a dispenser member (2) such as a pump, said fluiddispenser device being characterized in that it further comprises adispenser head according to claim
 1. 11. A fluid dispenser deviceaccording to claim 10, in which said inner body (10) of the head issnap-fastened to an actuating rod (3) of the pump (2) so that, in theevent that an attempt is made to tear off or remove the head, the innerbody (10), together with the closure means (40), remains fixed to saidpump (2), thereby preventing any contamination of the fluid contained inthe reservoir (1).
 12. A fluid dispenser device according to claim 10,in which said inner body (10) of the head is provided with closure means(40) at the dispensing orifice (12).
 13. A dispenser head for a fluiddispenser device for dispensing a fluid, comprising: an inner body (10)defining a dispensing channel (11) for the fluid, said channel (11)being terminated by a dispensing orifice (12) that defines a sprayprofile; and an outer body (20), distinct and coupled to the inner body,defining an actuating surface (21) on which a user presses to actuatethe dispenser device; wherein the inner body (10) is fixed to a stem ofthe dispenser device and the outer body (20) is fitted over the innerbody (10) in a removable non-frangible manner such that the inner bodycannot be simultaneously removed from the fluid dispenser device withthe outer body.
 14. The fluid dispenser device according to claim 13,wherein the inner body (10) is fixed in a non-removable manner to thedispenser device so that in the event that an attempt is made to tearoff or to remove the dispenser head, only the outer body (20) isremovable, the inner body (20) remaining fixed to said dispenser device.15. A dispensing device, comprising: a reservoir; a pump; and adispenser head for dispensing fluid from the reservoir; wherein thedispenser head comprises an inner body (10) defining a dispensingchannel (11) for the fluid, the channel (11) being terminated by adispensing orifice (12); and a separate outer body (20) defining anactuating surface (21) on which the user presses to actuate thedispenser device; and wherein the inner body (10) comprises thedispensing orifice (12) and is fixed in a non-removable manner to thepump and the outer body (20) is fitted over the inner body (10) in aremovable manner such that, in the event that an attempt is made to tearoff or to remove the dispenser head, only the outer body (20) isremovable, said inner body (20) remaining fixed to the pump.